Mick, hope this helps.
The wooden ground-glass frame (the part you lift to insert the film holder) outer dimensions are 212mm X 150mm X 10mm thick.
The groung-glass is 178mm X 127mm and sits in a rebate that is 4.5mm deep.
The wood baffle, the part that sits down inside the camera back, is 189mm square and is 5mm deep.
The outer dimensions of the wood film back (the part that the round metal pins are in each corner) is 203mm square and 6mm thick.
The round pins extend about 3.5mm and are 2mm in diameter.
The combined thickness, from the outside of the ground-glass frame to the inside baffle that sits inside the camera back is 22mm.
The metal strip (that the film holder butts against when inserted in the film back) is 162mm X 10mm
The back on my 5x7 Burke & James flatbed is 213mm square with a 200mm baffle about 3.4mm thick. It can be padded out with hobby shop felt. The locating pins are spaced about 183mm. This back is not the original B&J grey, but appears to have been adapted from another camera. However, it has worked well for several decades.
My guess - just about any wooden (and possibly metal) 5X7 back could be modified to fit your 33a. That would probably be a lot easier than to build one from scratch. There is a B&J back on ebay now for $38+.
I'mma go look in my 'junk pile..I may just have a 33a back
I had a parts 33 or 33a (I forget..or didn't know the difference) that I parted out and might still have the back
I do have a bunch of 5x7 backs anyway even if I don't have the proper one, that might be adaptable
keep bugging me..they are in a box in my storage and probably buried..so it could take a bit
Wouldn't it be better to take the dimensions directly from your camera, rather than someone else's back?
to add: those dimensions are better gotten from measuring your own camera as individual cameras often vary.
Last edited by Jon Shiu; 21-Jun-2018 at 14:14.
my black and white photos of the Mendocino Coast: jonshiu.zenfolio.com
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